Walkers Razor Slim Ear Pro - 12 Month Review

Team Jackal Captain and multi-discipline shooter Jon Cresswell has spent 12 months using the Razor Slim Ear Pro from Walkers, here’s his very detailed take on them, sure you’ll find it useful - 

 

Walkers Razor Slim Electronic Muffs are affordable electronic hearing protection for shooters. 

The Walkers Razor Slim electronic muffs have a 23dB noise reduction rating (the maximum noise level the hearing protector will reduce the sound) and offer the shooter a low-profile hearing protection solution.

The muffs themselves are made from a sound dampening composite and have a nice soft touch matt coating. The low profile of the muffs mean that they do not interfere with your shooting position or equipment.   

The electronic muffs are available in a variety of colours, however, I decided to go for the black ones - black goes with everything. The padding around the muffs feels comfortable against my face and as it moulds to the contours of my face it provides a good seal. They also feel comfortable when wearing thin frame ballistics eyewear (I use the Edge Tactical Overlords).

The padded headband is comfortable to wear and adjusts easily to fit the size of your head. So you can shoot all day wearing them. It also conceals the cable within the head band so that it doesn’t snag.

 

The muffs have 2 hi-gain omnidirectional microphones, one on each ear. The microphones detect and amplify sound and play it through the internal speakers. They are exceptionally good at picking up spoken voice, so you can hear Range Officers or shooting buddies nice and clearly, and hold a “normal” conversation whilst wearing them. They are also great for a large range or where you are some distance from other shooters as the amplified sound enables you to hear conversations from some distance.

 

The battery life is pretty good and they are powered by 2 x AAA batteries, so they are easy to change. The external battery compartment makes changing batteries exceptionally easy. The cover on the right ear muff slides up revealing the battery compartment so you can quickly swap out the batteries.

 

Sound protection

Excessive noise can cause permanent and disabling hearing loss. The HSE state that “The level at which hearing protection should be worn is now 85 decibels”. You can control and reduce the risk of hearing loss by wearing sustained hearing protection.

The sound within the muffs is reduced when the microphones detect external noise, through the microphones, over 90dB. So the crack of a gunshot (at around 140-165dB) will be cut off after 0.02 seconds and reduced by 23dB (according to Walkers GSM).   

How do they compare with other brands?

 

Walkers Razor Electronic Muff

Cost: £60

Weight: 340g

Battery life: I couldn’t find any data on the battery life, but I have only swapped out my batteries once in a year, so I’m cool with that (2 x AAA) 

Noise reduction rating: 23

Cut off: 90dB

 

MSA Sordin Pro

Cost: £211

Weight: 310g

Battery life: 300hrs (2 x AA)

Noise Reduction Rating: 18

Cut off: 82dB

 

3M™ PELTOR™ SportTac™ 

Cost: £154

Weight: 318g

Battery life: 600hrs (2 x AA)

Noise Reduction Rating: 26

Cut off: 82dB

 

The Walker’s electronic muffs are cheaper than other popular choices of shooting ear protection. They also have a reasonable noise reduction rating - reducing noise by 23dB. They do weigh slightly more than some of their competitors, however, they are comfy and you almost forget you are wearing them.

 

Pros

 

Cons

 

Full Specs